Friday, September 28, 2012

Ben Marco Malbec 2010... dense dark purple..which will be the hallmark of all the wines today.. ripe fruit on the nose and palate... dark raspberry but not over the top jammy...

Ben Marco Cabernet Sauvignon 2010 dark color from maceration.. a hint of chlorine? juicy on the palate.. lots of fruit tannins... . not afraid to be noticed

Ben Marco Expressivo a blend of malbec and others...tannat and petite verdot.. lots of cedar on the nose, and interesting how the fruit on the mid palate is all tannin... not wild about it.. a little clunky

Susana Balbo Estate Malbec again with the chlorine.. darker yet in color but more terroir on the nose, more interesting with pretty sweet tannins that keep you wanting more.

Susana Balbo Estate Cabernet from high vineyards where the grapes pick up some spice. elegant and lower in tannins... good structure.. nice

Susana Balbo Late Harvest Malbec.. allowed to sit on the vine much longer.. goes through a second fermentation.. nose of sweet molasis and tar.. viscous and lingering but not cloying.. very clean flavors.. from good acidity.. i was craving some bleu cheese

Wednesday, September 26, 2012

Chiarlo Gavi Piedmonte 2011... not sure if it is the vintage but this wine is much more Torrontes in nature than I remember... usually some good mouthfeel and juice but this was almost floral.. not as much mineral

Tommasi Prosecco Tenuta Filadora NV brut but I would swear there was a bit of residual sugar to it... floral notes

Pinot Grigio Le Rosse 2011 soft minerality and a touch sweet.. almost what I would call grapey which I get from the wines of Missouri..

Tommasi Rompicollo 2010 sangiovese and cab... lots of up front fruit.. a touch of meatiness to it.

Tommasi Ripasso 2010 straw and earth on the nose, fruit and tannins are just right... very nice go to wine for the area

Valpolicella Rafael 2010 soft red fruit.. good food wine.

Arele Appassimento 2010.. a blend of fresh wine and driedfruit.. a little more earthy and sweet. the step between regular and ripasso

Amarone della Valpolicella Classico 2008... made in more traditional method with large barrels and not the smaller barreque (sp) slightly brickish in color.. pinr and light golden raisin.. very elegant mouthfeel.. nice

Monday, September 24, 2012

Cakebread is arguably one of the most recognized names out of Napa.. celebrating their 40th harvest.

Chardonnay Napa Carneros nicely integrated with toast and acidity.. only a little malo so the butter isnt quite overly obvious..

Chardonnay Reserve .. a little more oak treatment and battonage or stirring of the lees but not overly oaked... just from better blocks in the vineyard

Pinot Noir Anderson Valley 2009.. actually the second vintage available in our market.. the 2007 being first and the 2008 because of the intense smoke was not bottled. Clear and soft this wine makes a very good argument for wine from Mendocino.

Merlot 2009... a right bank wine... carneros fruit that is from cooler climate.. lots of grip and texture.. not the sideways merlot for sure

Cabernet Sauvignon 2009... whats not to love... just a nice nice bottle

Cabernet Sauvignon Benchland 2009... and when benchland is mentioned its with the idea of the Rutherford Bench.. where a dusty quality usually stands out.. no exception here... this was a big masculine. need a wash kind of wine... almost needs a tougher steak like ribeye or porterhouse

Dancing Bear Cabernet Sauvignon... named for the imaginary machination of happy bears in the vineyards.. this is the elegant feminine side of the winery... lush and supple... very nice

Friday, September 14, 2012

Gustave Lorentz Pinot Noir Rose 2011.. soft and easy on the front but not a lot of there there.. maybe a little orange zest but overall too subtle

Clos du Pape Chateauneuf du Pape blanc 2009.. soft yellow and thick in the glass (thats what she said)... typical for the region these grapes come off thick and brutish but over time will soften and honey out.. mostly roussounn marsanne viognier grenache blanc

Les Penses de Pallus Loire 2009 pretty color of garnet and bright nose from the Cabernet Franc.. red berries with some cedar on the back with soft tannins.

Miniere Bourgueil loire 2006.. another Loire wine that features cab franc... but showing age and terroir more... food wine for sure

Chateau St Jacque Mouline a vent 2010.. showing much more dirt and terroir... much more restrained

Trevallon France 1998 coffee and earthy.. cab and syrah.. the cab comes across in the finish.. a bit waxy...interesting wine.. interesting story of the vineyard

Cos d'estournel St Estephe 1996 still showing lots of color.. french stink with a little nutty almond.. and wax.. (wax seemed a feature of the wine, must be my nose) black currant.. very nice thank you for the tasting

Chasse Spleen 1989 Moulis en Medoc tobacco and acidity for days.. enjoyed the mouthfeel but there was a touch of huskiness on the back of the palate...

Zelige-Caravent Manouches (which means Gypsy) black pepper and cant read the rest of the notes..dont remember liking it that much

A brown bag wine again with the waxy character.. green vegetal character... not really digging it and turns out it was Verite La Joie from California

Lassague 2007 Saint Emillon coffee and roasted meats.. showing lots of dark fruit. really liked this more than I have in the past times I have tried this wine.. good depth

Clos du Papes Chateauneuf du Pape 2008 lots of fruit on the palate.. good acidity a bit of the bacon fat and iodine/iron.. all things that make CDP wonderful.. and it should be good for some time to come

Perenne Cotes du Blaye 2009 also mosstly Merlot.. just not giving a lot of fruit.. may be on the downslide.

Passion D'une Vie 2009 Cotes du Roussillon syrah and carignan and others. has some nice fruit up front but not a lot of follow through in the flavors.. having tasted wines from this region and vintage recently was a little let down in overall taste

Rubus Barossa Shiraz 2010 low yield.. dark in the glass.. lots of juicy fruit and lush mouthfeel. not bad for negociant but still australia

Siegel Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon 2010 stinky feet.. green on the nose, this didnt translate to the palate.. with nice touch of spice from the syrah

Siegel Pinot Noir Reserve 2010 both Siegel are from Chile, this is light colored and still pretty powerful, even if not in a good way.. tar and dark fruit.. not too exciting though

Ecard Bourgogne Rouge Pinot Noir 2009 some earth and mushroom, a bit cloudy in the glass but the fruit is subtle.. definitely a feminine style

Alain Juame Chateauneuf du Pape Vieux Terron 2010 a tight nose to start but opened up to show some pepper and coffee.. juicy fruit with a nice tannic grip to make you remember.. pretty dark brooding purple(favorite of the day)

Gran Crucero Chile 2009 a blend of cab/syrah and carmenere. chile s btink? on the nose,from the carmenere.. and spice from the syrah. maybe a little more balanced

Domaine de la Colline St Jean Vacqueryas 2010 french stink.. a spice I cant name but not unpleasant.. dark fruit.. maybe a little off.